Mergers & Acquisitions

Value-oriented food retailer Smart & Final Stores Inc. plans to accelerate its expansion plans after posting double-digit sales growth in the fourth quarter.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – Sears Holding Corp. expects to form a real estate investment trust (REIT) within a few months and sees nothing wrong with paying vendors early. In a public blog post, Rob Schrieshiem, executive VP and CFO of Sears, said the company expects to form an REIT to purchase between 200 and 300 stores by June 1, 2015.

Commerce Calif. -- Value-oriented food retailer Smart & Final Stores Inc. plans to accelerate its expansion after posting double-digit sales growth in the fourth quarter.

Woodbury, N.Y. -- DJM Real Estate, a division of Gordon Brothers Group, has been retained by RadioShack Corporation to handle the disposition of seven owned industrial properties. These properties are located in Texas, California, Iowa and North Carolina.

DJM will be offering the properties for immediate sale, and can be purchased individually or in any combination, subject to U.S. Bankruptcy Court approval.

New Canaan, Conn. - Stadium Capital Management LLC and its affiliates have notified Big 5 Sporting Goods Corp. that Stadium Capital will nominate three independent candidates to the board of directors of Big 5 at the 2015 annual meeting, expected to be held in June 2015. The nominees are Dominic P. DeMarco, a managing director and co-chief investment officer of SCM and an existing member of the board; Nicholas Donatiello Jr., a consumer, media and technology strategist; and Michael J.

Foothill Rach, Calif. – A winning bidder has reportedly emerged for the assets of The Wet Seal Inc., which declared bankruptcy in January 2015. According to the Wall Street Journal, Versa Capital Management LLC will take over at least 140 store leases and invest $10 million in the specialty apparel chain.

A focus on efficiency and improved customer engagement helped True Value boost same store sales and report its strongest growth in 20 years.

The hardware co-op's total gross billings for fiscal 2014 were $2.015 billion, up 6% compared with the prior year, and the highest in two decades. Same store sales to retailers were up 5.2% on a gross billings basis. Destination True Value retail comps were up 4.8%, and overall same store sales were up 3.1%, the company reported.

Santa Monica, Calif. – Macerich Co., a California-based mall operator whose properties include Tysons Corner Center in Tysons Corner, Virginia, has rejected a hostile $22 billion takeover bid from Simon Property Group Inc. Macerich has publicly stated it thinks the deal undervalues its portfolio and growth opportunities.

"It is truly disappointing Macerich would not even meet to discuss our proposal," said Simon Property CEO David Simon. "Macerich's rejection is based on a rosy view of its future prospects."